Ball of Nothing

Zero didn't like the sly smiles everyone was giving him. It was the kind of "I-know-something-you-don't" kind of smile. Baal would often give him this annoying smile when he was keeping secrets and the one thing Zero hated more than cliff hangers were secrets. If he knew they existed, it drove him crazy to not know what it was.

Qin Yun and Zero were the last to eat lunch and Zoe wasn't too pleased. Even as the zashikiwarashi fumed, she continued to heat up their lunch and refill their cups. Qin Yun did a debrief with Zero about his fighting style earlier on. It was clear as day that Zero wasn't a warrior. His movements may be nimble but his bloodlust missing. His experience was also sorely lacking and Qin Yun easily gained the upper hand because Zero wasn't sly enough to use tricks.

The fox spirit was quick to finish her food and excused herself while Zero got bombarded by the kids about his training session.

Out of hearing range, the warriors decided to gather up to discuss their surprise Martial Exchange Demonstration. Roovan was patrolling the area to investigate the disturbing waves of energy when he saw Qin Yun sparring with Zero. The boy looked like he was struggling so as experienced warriors, they wanted to help Zero develop his personal fighting style.

"What's the plan?" Roovan asked as he landed in the village square.

Ruth took a stick and started scribbling names on the soil, matching the matches and opponents.

"It would be better for Zero to observe real battles instead of teaching him basics from the book. He's rather smart but lacks experience," Ruth told the eleven gathered warriors who agreed.

"We also wouldn't want to overwhelm him with too many styles so we're pitting the same type of fighting styles together. The first match will be between myself and Mitchnew as we're both archers."

Mitchnew agreed with the Chieftess and asked if Zero would need to learn any long-ranged styles.

"I'm a sniper but Zenobia is an acrobat. She specialises in fast bow drawing but I specialise at accuracy."

Ruth shook his head. "It doesn't really matter because the tonfa is a mid-range and close quarter combat weapon. Still, I would like Zero to know how archers fight so he knows how to counter them in future."

The vampire turned to the giantess and the new village chief warrior. "The both of you specialise in close-combat so I will have both of you face off with each other. Fear not, we will be using this clearing after Lovina reinforces it with magic to avoid damaging too much of the village so feel free to go all out."

Clowis grinned ferally and Camie laughed. As a giantess, she was always careful to handle everything in the village gently. If she went all out, it would be easy to smash the smaller people into pulp. She didn't know if Clowis would be able to handle her full strength but as the new village head warrior, surely he could manage somehow. The thought of actually having a good spar made both warriors happy.

Gerald wasn't too surprised when the vampire matched him up with Vrald seeing as they were the only two sword-users in the village. Likewise, Vishnu and Gweshr were paired up because of their transformation abilities even if the minotaur didn't need special conditions to transform.

"We will wait for a full moon," Ruth told Gweshr who expressed his concern. "It's only two nights away."

Qin Yun didn't know what to think of her opponent. While Titor was also a spirit, he was nowhere near as powerful as her. The mother of all foxes asked Ruth if she should hold back. Titor didn't take any offence to Qin Yun's attitude. Deep down, he knew that he would never be able to win this ancient nine-tailed fox. Still, it would be an honour to spar with her.

"I will do my best to not let you get bored. Hopefully, we can inspire Zero to incorporate qi into his combat style," the brown bear spirit descendant smiled.

Qin Yun grinned. She would fully make use of Titor to demonstrate the full extent to what qi could do. Titor stiffened and shuddered when he felt the fox spirit's bloodlust directed towards him. He sincerely hoped that Zero would be kind enough to patch him up by the time the match was over. He didn't know if he even stood a chance against such an overpowered opponent.

The last pairing for the Martial Exchange Demonstration was none other than Ruth and Roovan.

"Isn't it unfair for you?" the raven beastman asked. Ruth shrugged. "As long as I get enough sunblock salve, I should be fine. We're demonstrating aerial battle. I will be partially transforming into a bat on that day and using weapons so feel free to do the same."

Roovan grinned. "We could do it at night if you want, no need to do it under the sun when it is clearly a disadvantage for you."

Ruth thought about it and agreed.

Zenobia drafted the schedule for the Martial Exchange. There would be two matches each day starting tomorrow with two matches in the night.

"I think it will be nice to have Camie and Clowis' match tomorrow in the afternoon. Mitchnew and I will fight the first match in the morning."

Nobody objected and Ruth volunteered for the night match on the second day.

"I guess we can go for the afternoon match on the second day?" Vrald looked at Gerlad who nodded.

"I have no objections. What about you? Do you want to go on the second or third day?"

Qin Yun smiled. "I don't mind going on the third day. Gweshr and Vishnu have to go on the night of the third day because of the full moon. I guess we're done now?"

Zenobia grinned. "This will be exciting. I wonder what kind of combat style Zero will develop."

Ruth chose not to comment, the memory of that deadly axe heel drop kick still fresh in his mind. Mitchnew didn't look too sure either and pitied Ruth when he shuddered. The ex-assassin knew that even without a solid fighting style or experience, Zero was extremely dangerous. His raw potential could easily put seasoned adventurers out of business.

However, with power comes responsibility and if nobody taught Zero how to control them, it could very easily become a tragedy.

"It's decided, we make the announcement tonight at dinner. I'm sure everyone wants to spend as much time as they can around Zero. There'd be another feast tonight," Zenobia sighed.

Qin Yun laughed. "Our young doctor has stocked up on hangover medicine. I think he's getting better at understanding us."

Her statement made the warriors laugh. It was true. Zero had come a long way since they first saw him as Hua Tuo's puny student. His weak first impression and the shock he gave everyone after using Divine Magic was certainly a game-changer. Zero spent months missing after Lord Baal took him away to recover and returned as a teenager, much to everyone's surprise. Still, it was easy to recognise Zero. Other than his height, nothing much has changed on the surface.

As the warriors went their separate ways to prepare for the Martial Exchange Demonstration, Ruth decided to check on Seff. The baby vampire was growing up quickly according to Olaf who was loitering in the village and harassing Schaf whenever he could. Lucifer was still livid about his stolen books and for one period of time, Ruth heard that the dragon got dragged back to hell for his punishment. It only lasted for a few weeks before the dragon returned to the village.

The vampire neared Karris' hut when he heard Seff. The boy was now a gorgeous chubby infant of two years old even if had only been about a month since he was born. Karris measured his growth spurt several times a day and Mitchnew was finding it challenging to keep up with the new clothes she had to make for the baby. Seff proved to be extremely intelligent and was able to understand common language now. He still had to feed on dark magic and Lovina has been diligent in feeding him three times a day if not more. Seff can now eat and drink things so Karris and Lovina have been trying to get the boy to drink dark mana potions from a bottle instead. Ruth didn't think they did very well because Seff toddled over to him and started sucking on his finger.

The Roth vampire allowed it and patted his godson's head. Who knew that half-bred vampires grew up faster than full-blooded vampires? Also, Zero did a check-up yesterday and noticed that Seff had no allergies to sunlight thanks to his human genetics. Ruth envied that a little and sighed. Nobody knew if Seff could feed on human food when he got older but for now, everyone was glad that Seff didn't need to drink blood to survive.

"Hey, you're not hungry anymore so let go!" Ruth shrugged the kid off when the pink eyes turned back to silver. Seff pouted playfully and huffed.

It turns out, the kid was also a glutton and Ruth didn't know if that was thanks to Zero's influence. Leon had been telling him stories about their village head and his incredible feats and Seff simply idolised the young doctor, wanting to be like him. Vrald told the half-vampire that he had to eat a lot to grow big and strong so the child has taken to becoming a glutton.

Karris was knitting some new pair of socks when Ruth carried the boy inside.

"Hello," he greeted and the human smiled. She looked slightly tired because of how Seff didn't need a lot of sleep at night. Moona could only entertain Seff for so long in the night before the child got homesick and wanted to see his mother. Ruth had been caring for the child whenever he could for the past few weeks while Zero was with Hua Tuo cultivating in Trigression Falls. The kid has grown attached to him and Ruth wondered if this will always be the case for the next hundred years.

"I will be participating in an event two nights from now and staying for a little longer before heading back to complete Zero's training."

One thing Ruth liked about Karris was how she didn't ask a lot of questions and simply accepted life the way it was. She smiled and wished him good luck cheerfully and Ruth wished that she'd asked him about his next visit instead.

Seff didn't take the news too kindly and started to cry. He clung onto the vampire's leg and didn't let go, even going as far as to digging his growing teeth into Ruth's ankle. His mother was immediately at Ruth's side, apologising and trying to get her son away from his godfather when the unbelievable happened.

Seff smacked Karris' hand away with a force that a normal child shouldn't possess and everyone heard a loud crack. Ruth froze and even Seff let go of his ankle to stare at Karris who yelled in pain before crouching down to cradle her limp wrist.

"M-mommy?"

Karris' face was contorted with pain and her clothes drenched with sweat. Still, she shakily smiled and reassured Seff that it was alright.

"It's not your fault, darling. Mommy's ok."

Still, the boy knew what he'd done even if he didn't understand why. He hurt his mother and the guilt made tears pour non-stop. Ruth froze up and in that instant didn't know if he should rush to find Zero first or comfort his wailing godson. If left alone, he wasn't sure what Seff would do. It might endanger Karris more with his uncontrolled powers and emotions.

"Zero?" he tried the mental connection and thankfully, it connected.

"Ruth? What's wrong?"

Thankful for the response, he urged his student to come over quickly. When Zero heard about the accident, he got up and apologised to Leon, Jacqueline and Rima for skipping out on their promised game of tag.

The village head didn't run, he simply teleported over and analysed the scene before him in five seconds. While casting calming magic on Seff, he took Karris' wrist to examine the damage.

"I'm going to cast sleeping magic for a while to numb the pain while I heal it. Nothing too serious, it's just a broken wrist."

Karris nodded and Zero set to work quickly. Seff stared wide-eyed at Zero who was fixing Karris' wrist and whimpered. The baby vampire knew who Zero was and he had mixed feelings seeing his idol help his mother whom he'd injured accidentally. Would his idol be disappointed in him for hurting his mother? Seff was afraid and didn't dare to look at Zero after the young doctor had tucked Karris into bed.

Zero turned to Ruth with a questioning look at Seff who was hiding behind his godfather's leg. Ruth decided to talk to Zero telepathically and they agreed to bring Seff out for a change of environment to talk about it. Right now, Zero felt that Ruth was more needed here instead of back at Hua Tuo's hut. His combat training can be done without the vampire's help. It will merely take longer. Besides, there were many experienced warriors in Half Moon Village who would be happy to teach him.

Ruth didn't say anything about that and kept the thoughts to himself. He felt torn as Zero's teacher and Seff's godfather. Zero didn't have very much longer before he completed his training and had to leave Endow Hill. After Hua Tuo taught Zero how to perform surgeries and after Zero perfected his combat style, he would graduate and leave for his magic lessons with Merlin.

As much as Ruth hated admitting it, he would miss his student and saviour greatly. Sometimes, he thought about accompanying the boy on his travels out of worry for him but then remembered that there was someone scarier and more capable who would be by Zero's side during his adventure. He might not be familiar with Truen but the wood elf certainly had a reputation. Baal was also cautious about dealing with Zero's bodyguard who was more overprotective of the brunet than anyone Ruth knew.

"Hey there buddy," Zero smiled. He spoke softly and gently when they were a little away from the hut. It was a quaint spot by the gardens and nobody visited it at this time of the afternoon.

Seff refused to meet Zero's eyes as big fat tears welled up at the brim of his lower eyelid. he felt immensely guilty and didn't know how to make things right. Would his idol be disappointed? His godfather was also unusually silent. Everyone would hate him now, he'd been a terrible boy for not listening to his mother.

Ruth stared at the small trembling figure and sighed before placing a comforting hand on the boy's head. it was a familiar weight that conveyed reassurance and acceptance. The simple action was all Sef needed to know that he wasn't hated and let the tears fall, apologising profusely.

Zero smiled and hugged the small vampire. Growing up with uncontrollable powers was difficult especially without guidance. Zero knew this too well with firsthand experience. He couldn't count the number of mistakes he made and the mess he caused each and every time. If it weren't for Truen, the Great Gods, his friends and his teachers, Zero would have gone astray onto the wrong path a long time ago.

"It's not your fault," he told Seff after the young child stopped crying. Seff still didn't look at him and Zero continued.

"However, you still need to apologise to your mother. You still hurt her and that's a fact."

Seff stiffened at that and before the guilt could eat him up, Zero was quick to add on.

"Your mother isn't angry at you. She's ok now but the same thing could easily happen again. Seff, you're a strong boy. You're a lot stronger than your mother and very different from many people out there. As a strong boy, you need to protect your mama from bad people. Won't you learn from your godfather how to ut that strength to good use?"

The dirty blonde boy looked up to Zero with his big silver eyes. "Pwotect?"

Zero grinned. "That's right. You can fight away all the bad people who want to hurt your mother and the people in this village. Ruth is very strong too and he can teach you how to control that strength and use them carefully. What do you think? Is not such a bad thing to be strong now, is it?"

Seff thought about it for a while. He might be young but he knew what he wanted. "Will I be stwong wike you?"

Zero blinked. Him? Strong? His only talent is absorbing things into the void. Many of the villagers here could easily whoop his behind with one finger and the young doctor felt uncomfortable lying to a young child but he still nodded in difficulty with fake enthusiasm.

"That's right, you can be strong like me. However, it will take a lot of hard work."

Ruth raised a brow at Zero's awkwardness when Seff turned his sparkly eyes towards him. The half-vampire started opening up to his idol and told him stories about eating a lot to become like him. Zero laughed at the story and told Seff that if he ate too much he would get scolded.

Seff turned pale and turned to Ruth in horror. Ruth simply smacked Zero and the head.

"You only get scolded because you ate Hua Tuo's lunch and left nothing for him. Also, the chefs in La Boutique are afraid of your stomach because you don't stop eating! If you limited it to only food, I doubt anyone would fault you but you ate their plates when you become overly excited. Those things cost more than food!"

Zero denied it and Ruth fumed. Seff watched his godfather and idol argue before laughing. They took a longer way back to enjoy the sense of normalcy with Seff riding on Ruth's shoulders. Ruth was thinking about Zero's proposal to have him stay in Half Moon Village to care for baby Seff and pay a visit every few days for his lessons instead of staying with Hua Tuo the whole time. The Roth vampire felt torn. He didn't want to choose between his godson and student. They both needed him very badly and time was too short.

"Mama!" Seff screamed when he saw his home and scrambled off Ruth's head, running over to Karris who was waiting for them at the door.

"My child, where have you been?"

Seff cried once again and apologised while his mother carried him in her arms, stroking his hair softly. Zero watched the warm scene and felt a pang in his heart. Mothers were great creatures and even though Zero was surrounded by many people who loved him, the brunet couldn't help but wonder what a mother's love for their child is like. Karris was a frail and weak human but in front of her child, she was like an unbreakable wall with her love. Zero felt as if she could hold the world up even if everything was collapsing around her in order to protect Seff. That trait was admirable and Zero wished he could experience that kind of warmth even at least once.

Ruth watched his student and couldn't understand the reason for that longing expression as he watched the mother and son. Was Zero envious of that family love? The vampire thought that Zero was rather blind to it. Although his student doesn't know it, there were many people who were willing to lay their lives for him even if they knew he was an inextinguishable existence. To protect Zero and keep him happy, these people would stop at nothing.

Ruth looked back to the mother and son with a knowing smile. He was one of the people. It was way too late to turn back time, the young doctor had already captivated him like how Seff has captivated Karris' entire world.

Decision made, Ruth decided to find the lab members. They should be done with the prototype of Zero's training weapon while trying to craft the actual one that was commissioned. He needed to familiarise himself with the tonfas before he could teach Zero how to use them.